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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25298761">Everything We Are</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/MagicMysticFantasy/pseuds/MagicMysticFantasy'>MagicMysticFantasy</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Family Isn't Always Blood [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Outer Banks (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Best Friends, Childhood Friends, Found Family, Friendship, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Male Friendship, Nothing actually shown, Post-Canon, post-show</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 11:41:10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,627</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25298761</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/MagicMysticFantasy/pseuds/MagicMysticFantasy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>John B looked up, eyes wide, glancing between JJ and the page in his hand. His mouth opened and closed a few times, before he just shook his head a little and handed the page over to him. JJ scanned the page briefly in confusion, before freezing and scanning it again. Then he reread it a little more slowly. Report of Adoption.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>JJ &amp; John "Big John" Routledge, JJ &amp; John B. Routledge, John "Big John" Routledge &amp; John B. Routledge</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Family Isn't Always Blood [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1832668</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>59</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Everything We Are</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This is an idea that came to me while writing the other story in this series! I'm curious about exploring this more, so there will probably be another story to this series sooner or later. In the meantime, enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>JJ sat on the floor beside the table in the middle of the room, shuffling through papers and periodically glancing up at John B. It had been a few weeks since the other boy had returned (come back from the dead, his mind whispered, before he pushed it aside), and things had finally settled down after the chaos of the treasure.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Life had changed drastically for all of them involved, now having millions to their names set aside in bank accounts. JJ had repeatedly needed to force himself to not go on a spending spree like he had before, keeping the money safe for groceries and rent the few times his dad would forget. He was getting close to legal freedom from the man anyway, and would soon be able to finally move out - and he’d appreciate the cash then.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>John B had fully bought the Chateau, so that he could keep the house and no longer worry about paying rent. The rest, he’d set aside to deal with later - and maybe to convince CPS that he could make it on his own. He had decided he still wanted to work around the docks, even if it wasn’t for Sarah’s family anymore, which could only help his case.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The others: JJ knew Pope would be spending a portion of his funds on going to college like his parents wanted and probably saving the rest for his future under their instructions, Kiara was planning to donate a lot of her portion towards environmental funds while keeping aside her college fund, and Sarah was planning to use hers to get away from the rest of her family so that she ‘didn’t end up an alcoholic by age thirty’ as she put it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t really care what the plans of the others were, since he’d always had a feeling that Kie and Pope would be leaving Outer Banks behind, and he didn’t really know Sarah that well. But John B’s plans had made him nervous, and it was reassuring that he’d at least bought the Chateau as proof that he was still planning to stick around.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>At the reminder, he glanced up at John B again, the sight of his friend soothing the anxious edge that had itched under his skin ever since he’d gone missing in a storm at sea. Sensing his gaze, John B glanced up as well and met his eyes with a slight quirk of his lips, before turning back to the stack of papers he was sorting through.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, where should I put this thing?” Kie asked from across the room, holding up a strange contraption. John B glanced at it, before scanning the developing piles along the wall.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Put it in pile two for now, I’ll deal with figuring out what it is later.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>John B had finally decided to go through his dad’s stuff, now that he had proof the man was truly gone. JJ had walked in on him staring at the wall a few days ago, unmoving and rigid, face wet. Despite his hesitance, it was easier than usual to come up alongside him and wrap his arms around the grieving teen, and John B had responded by clinging to JJ tightly and finally breaking down.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When the others in their group of friends had heard they were planning to clean out Big John’s study, they had wanted to help too. JJ felt a little weird about them being in Big John’s space when they never really knew the man, but said nothing since it wasn’t his place to. But John B had felt the same way - even if he didn’t admit to such aloud, JJ could tell - and set them to sorting through the artifacts while he and JJ sorted through the man’s journals and notes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A sudden pause in the rustling of papers from John B caused JJ to look up again. The taller boy was looking at a page and frowning a little, though as he read more of what the page had on it, his eyes slowly widened in shock.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“John B?” JJ asked hesitantly, catching the attention of the other three. “Everything okay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>John B looked up, eyes wide, glancing between JJ and the page in his hand. His mouth opened and closed a few times, before he just shook his head a little and handed the page over to him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>JJ scanned the page briefly in confusion, before freezing and scanning it again. Then he reread it a little more slowly. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Report of Adoption. Child’s Name: Jason Joseph Maybank. Adopting Parents: John Booker Routledge II.</span>
  </em>
  <span> The rest was all legal jargon, and JJ’s eyes kept going back to the first few lines.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The page was missing the signature of a judge, as well as JJ’s own father, but the rest of the paper was filled in completely with relevant information. He looked up at John B, his own eyes wide and disbelieving. His fingers crinkled the page a little as his hands curled into fists, but he couldn’t bring himself to let it go.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did you know about this?” he breathed out. John B shook his head, licking his lips and looking as lost as JJ felt. The others in the room had gone quiet, watching the two of them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No,” John B croaked out. “But if it’s as far along as it is, then he meant it. I remember now that he mentioned something about ‘scaring some sense’ into somebody right before he had a breakthrough and left. I think he was planning on… </span>
  <em>
    <span>convincing</span>
  </em>
  <span> him to sign it, in retrospect.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>JJ would have been happy to just sit there for the rest of the night working through those sentences if it hadn’t been for the others. Pope stepped forward, drawing their attention.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s that paper for?” he asked, getting right to the heart of the issue. JJ’s hands moved a few inches closer to his body, unwilling to give up the page now that he had it. He sent a look towards John B who read him instantly and took over.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s - it’s an adoption form my dad filled out. It’s for JJ,” he said softly. There was a sharp inhale from some of the others, before Sarah stood up from her chair and went over to put a hand on John B’s shoulder.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think you two might need some space to process this,” she said quietly. “I’ll head home for today and come back to keep helping tomorrow.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She pressed a kiss to his cheek, before walking towards the door, sending a smile towards JJ as she went. Across the room, Kie cleared her throat.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ll take off too for now,” she said firmly. “You guys deserve some privacy after finding that. But if you need us, Pope and I’ll be just a call away.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With that, both left, with Kie squeezing both of their shoulders briefly and Pope giving them each a pat on the back. A few moments later and the door to the Chateau banged shut, leaving JJ and John B alone in Big John’s study. They sat in silence for several moments, before John B spoke again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Dad… he really liked you,” he finally said, avoiding JJ’s eyes by ducking his head. “He was really happy the first time he met you, and after you went home that day he told me you were a good kid and that I’d picked my friend well. When he was home and you weren’t he’d sometimes ask when you were planning on coming over, and sometimes he’d text me to see which kind of milk you preferred or whatever when he was at the store.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He knew about my dad,” JJ said, not addressing John B’s previous statement, though both boys knew he’d heard it and would process it in his own time. John B looked up at him, and bit his lip, considering the statement.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, probably,” he finally admitted. “Your dad has a bit of a reputation around here, and we weren’t exactly subtle when patching you up over the years. He probably knew something was going on, but didn’t want to say anything to us about it. Knowing Dad, he probably tried to make this place as close to a safe haven as he could while figuring out what to do - apparently this was what he finally ended up deciding.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>JJ looked down at the page in his hands again at John B’s gesture towards it. Adoption. His full name. Big John’s full name. The corners of his mouth turned down a little as he stared at it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It wasn’t pity, JJ,” John B said, living right inside his head as usual. JJ glanced up, an eyebrow raised skeptically, a little wary to consider the alternative. “He might not have chosen this route if your dad wasn’t, well, your dad, but he would have found a way to make you family anyway. When I say that he liked you, that’s probably understating it by more than a bit. Once, when he was delirious after not sleeping for three days straight, as I was putting him to bed he mentioned something along the lines of having ‘such great sons’. You were one of his already, bro, this just would have made it official if he’d been able to follow through.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He couldn’t stop the lump in his throat from forming at that. He leaned forward, elbows on his knees and head ducked low to hide his face. The adoption paper was clutched greedily in his hands and held safely out of the way. JJ takes several long, shuddering breaths, before beginning the process of stuffing his emotions back in their box.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>From across the way, John B reached out and wrapped his fingers around JJ’s forearm gently and squeezed. It felt secure, a little like solidarity, and like exactly what JJ needed as his emotions kept overflowing the box and he had to start over. There was a mixture of grief, loss, a little bit of love, relief, and more than a little anger at the lost opportunity.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It took longer than JJ expected or wanted, but eventually he felt composed enough to uncurl. John B left his hand where it was in silent support, even as he looked around the room to give JJ privacy. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah,” JJ said, standing up and letting John B’s hand slide off his arm. “We’re probably done here for the day, huh? Besides, I’m hungry, we should eat.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stood and set the adoption paper to the side on the desk in the corner of the room, reluctant to let it go, but knowing that nobody else but John B would touch the desk while sorting through the room. Turning around he offered a hand to the other teen and helped haul him to his feet.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You willing to make your mac n’ cheese?” John B asked hopefully. “Pretty sure we have the ingredients for it here, and I can try my hand at garlic bread?” JJ laughed at his excitement.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What am I, a housewife?” he asked mockingly, before shaking his head. “Yeah, dumbass, I can make mac n’ cheese for you. No need to break out the kicked-puppy look, so stop it. And don’t think I won’t be watching you make the bread - the last time you went near the oven you burnt the food to a crisp.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I forgot,” John B protested as they made their way to the kitchen. “You can’t blame me, Pope burst into the house in a panic, food was the last thing on my mind.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No excuse,” JJ maintained, beginning to get ingredients together with him. “I don’t trust you in this kitchen anymore. How you manage to eat anything besides charcoal without me here, I’ll never know.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was a moment of pause after that where there usually wasn’t one before John B laughed. JJ’s head shot up suspiciously from where he was setting the macaroni to boil, eyeing his friend warily where he was beginning to spread butter and a thin layer of garlic across bread slices. Nudging John B with his hip as he began shredding cheese, JJ kept his gaze intent on the other boy. After a moment the teen huffed out a quiet breath.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, you know how we’re clearing out my Dad’s study?” he asked, to which JJ rolled his eyes. Honestly, they’d been doing it all day, what did he expect? “Right, so I’ve been thinking about what to do with the room afterward, and…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And…?” JJ prompted when John B fell silent.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And,” he continued, “what would you think about, well, living here with me? With the study cleared out and turned into your bedroom? Or even Dad’s old bedroom cleared out and turned into yours? I just thought the study would work, since it probably would have been yours anyway, if Dad’s plan had followed through.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>JJ froze, pausing in the middle of shredding cheese. Everything was quiet enough that the sound of the stovetop flame was surprisingly loud. He looked at John B incredulously. His friend met his gaze steadily, clearly serious despite the hesitant way the offer was given. Leaning against the counter for a moment, he considered the idea for a moment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… never really expected that,” he admitted. “What would happen about my dad?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Unless he comes looking for you, nothing you don’t want to happen,” John B said seriously. “You could come and go as much as you want, and it would basically be like roommates - or, well, brothers, I guess. Which, you have to admit, we kind of already do. This would just make it official.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I -” JJ started, before stopping again. He was staring wide-eyed at John B for the second time in the past ten minutes. When he continued, his voice came out a lot more vulnerable sounding than he’d anticipated, and he had to fight the urge to throw up his walls and cringe at the sound. “Are you really sure?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“More sure than I’ve ever been about anything,” John B said, eyes serious, even as he smiled a little, bumping JJ with his shoulder. “So, what do you say? Want to be brothers properly?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” JJ finally said, voice cracking a little, and were it anyone but this particular person in front of him, he’d already be gone. “Yeah, I would.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Great,” John B said warmly, reaching around to clap his hand to JJ’s shoulder and lingering a little as JJ leaned into it. “As soon as the study is cleared, we can use some of those millions to get some proper furniture in there. You can officially move in then, or if you want to sooner, then you can stay on the couch or in Dad’s old room until then.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>JJ couldn’t help but grin a little at that, a bit of the weight he hadn’t even known he was carrying falling from his shoulders at the realization that pretty soon, he’d never have to go home to his father again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I’ll stay here tonight then,” he said with forced levity. “Now move your ass. Either get your bread in the oven or move so I can finish the mac.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>John B laughed a little, but complied, putting the bread in the oven before darting away. JJ smiled too, getting the noodles off the heat, then shaking his head when he saw the oven dial facing opposite where it was supposed to. Spinning it back around to the right direction and opening the door a little to let out the heat, he couldn’t help but think that John B was lucky he was going to be moving in with him soon.</span>
</p>
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